This invention concerns collection of yard waste, and in particular is directed to a yard debris collection device which is large enough to receive and store leaves, bark, sticks and small branches raked into the device and with provision for conveniently carrying the device and dumping the contents into a trash can.
Dust pans have been in use for many years, to receive dirt, dust and other debris swept into the dust pan with a broom, from a flat floor. The dust pan has a rigid body and can be used to dump material into a trash container, provided the trash container has a wide enough opening. Flat-ended shovels can be used for the same purpose, as well as for use in actively scooping debris from a surface without use of a broom.
In cleaning a lawn or yard of fallen leaves, sticks, small branches or other debris, there has been no efficient and effective way to gather such debris and transfer it to one or more trash cans. Something like a very large dust pan would be a possibility, but would be unwieldy to carry, with an inconvenient handle, and not conducive to transferring collected debris into a trash can, such as a 30 gallon container.
Larger collection devices have been suggested for this purpose, as described in the following U.S. patents and applications: U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,312,263, 4,434,829, 4,854,003, 5,088,531, 5,365,632, 5,878,461, 7,367,600, 8,684,429 and Pub. No. 2011/0277883. Some of these patent documents address the need for a carryable or draggable receptacle, and/or one whose shape can be changed by the user in order to provide a scoop-shaped front end for effective delivery of debris into a relatively narrow-mouthed trash can. See, e.g. the above U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,878,461, 7,367,600, 3,312,263, 4,434,829 and Pub. No. 2011/0277883. None of the devices described in these documents has combined features of ideal size and width for raking, carrying and storage, with optimum flexibility for bending the forward end into a pouring configuration while still providing sufficient stiffness for receiving heavy materials, and provision of handles of optimum configuration and position on the device for comfortable and convenient carrying. These are objects of the current invention described below.